Two dead after house fire near Dartmouth

Fatal fire 1 (1 of 4)

A Halifax regional firefighter stands in front of a house on Salmon River Drive near Dartmouth that was destroyed by fire just before midnight Wednesday. Two people died in the blaze. (TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

A Halifax regional firefighter stands in front of a house on Salmon River Drive near Dartmouth that was destroyed by fire just before midnight Wednesday. Two people died in the blaze.

(TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Fatal fire 2 (2 of 4)

Halifax regional firefighters clean up after a house fire near Dartmouth on Wednesday night that claimed the lives of a man and a woman in their 50s. Investigators do not believe the fire was suspicious, but are still on scene. (TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Halifax regional firefighters clean up after a house fire near Dartmouth on Wednesday night that claimed the lives of a man and a woman in their 50s. Investigators do not believe the fire was suspicious, but are still on scene.

(TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Fatal fire 3 (3 of 4)

Firefighters were at the scene Thursday morning of a fatal house fire near Dartmouth. The blaze, which was spotted by a passing motorist just before midnight, claimed the lives of a man and a woman in their 50s. (TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Firefighters were at the scene Thursday morning of a fatal house fire near Dartmouth. The blaze, which was spotted by a passing motorist just before midnight, claimed the lives of a man and a woman in their 50s.

(TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Fatal fire 4 (4 of 4)

Halifax firefighters and police officers carry the remains of a family dog from the scene of a house fire on Salmon River Drive near Dartmouth, where two people were found dead just after midnight. (TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

Halifax firefighters and police officers carry the remains of a family dog from the scene of a house fire on Salmon River Drive near Dartmouth, where two people were found dead just after midnight.

(TIM KROCHAK / Staff)

UPDATED 4:47 p.m. Thursday

Two people are dead after a house fire outside Dartmouth late Wednesday.

Police and fire officials haven’t released the names of the victims, but a neighbour identified them as Carol and Bob Rafuse, longtime residents of 275 Salmon River Drive.

Emergency crews were called to the couple’s beige bungalow off Highway 107 and Ross Road at about 11:45 p.m.

There was heavy smoke and fire visible from the front of the building at the time.

As they began to battle the flames, firefighters also searched the home and soon found a woman in her mid-50s to mid-60s and a man, aged 59.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene, but paramedics rushed the woman to hospital. She as pronounced dead at hospital, RCMP said in a news release.

Next-door neighbour James Brinkschulte didn’t see or hear anything, not even barking from the couple’s dog until an RCMP officer knocked on his door late Wednesday night to tell him to prepare to evacuate in case the fire spread.

But crews from several stations were at the scene and worked to contain the fire to the Rafuse home.

Brinkschulte looked outside and saw “smoke rolling out of the roof — smoking like crazy” at the house where Carol and Bob Rafuse lived, he said.

Brinkschulte saw firefighters carry his neighbour, Carol Rafuse, out of the burning building, place her on the lawn and perform CPR on her. They then brought Bob Rafuse out to the lawn.

Online property records show the home is owned by Carol Elizabeth Rafuse and was previously owned by both Carol and Robert Rafuse.

He described the Rafuses as “private people” who lived there long before he moved to the area in 1993. They were retired — she had worked as a teacher and he as a custodian — and they both liked to garden.

They have a son in the Enfield area, he said.

Bob Rafuse was also a longtime smoker, Brinkschulte said.

McNulty said he didn’t know whether cigarettes played a role in the fire.

As fire crews were cleaning up this morning, animal control, police and firefighters carried the body of a dog in a white sheet from the burned home. McNulty later confirmed the family’s dog died in the fire.

Fire investigators were at the scene Thursday morning, and a portion of the road near Highway 107 was blocked off for several hours.

Investigators didn’t know exactly where or how the fire started and had identified several possible causes, McNulty said.

By the afternoon, they finally designated the cause of the fire as “undetermined,” McNulty said.

Another house fire destroyed a Timberlea home Thursday afternoon.

The residents were inside 53 Parkdale Ave. when the fire started around 3:15 p.m., according to McNulty. They got outside safely, but firefighters had to take a defensive strategy to prevent the blaze from spreading to nearby homes.

The home was burning top to bottom by the time firefighters were able to get inside to fight the fire.

McNulty said the homeowner suggested the fire may have been caused by a propane-powered sauna in the basement, but that had not been confirmed, he said.